Flight Report :
CX 919 Hong Kong - Manila

Marco Polo Check-in The Marco Polo Club counters are usually queue-free. The check-in process tends to be quick and smooth. I noticed the self-check-in machines look a bit different now though.
Air Macau in Hong Kong I believe Air Macau does some charter services for another airline. I see their planes in Hong Kong quite regularly, almost every time I fly out. However, it usually sits in the satellite terminal, and not actually at a main terminal gate.
747 Service The Manila route is quite well-served. I was quite surprised at the number of flights, with over 15 a day spread out across Cathay Pacific, Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Dragonair, Saudi Arabian, and Hong Kong Express.
Taking off towards the east, there wasn't much scenery to see. We were soon over the South China Sea and headed southeast towards Manila.
We were on a renewed 747 with the new AVOD entertainment system. There were no movies since it was only a short flight of about 90 minutes, but there was plenty of TV and music to select from. The meal consisted of a very small sandwich. It looked disgusting, but didn't taste too bad. Considering how cheap the fare was, perhaps that was why Cathay would let this happen. It was nowhere near filling. Imagine having wine to go with this!
There was the typical paperwork to fill out prior to landing. The yellow form was for the H1N1 health declaration, and the other pamphlet for immigration / customs.
Even though it was only about 4pm, the sun had started to set. I guess winter is coming. I was a bit disappointed with the dimming light. At this rate, it would be too dark once we reach land in Manila to plane spot. I was hoping to see more Philippine Airlines and the smaller local carriers.
Final Approach Our approach into Manila consisted of a number of turns, and it seems we finally landed from the northeast. There was a mix of city and country sceneries. There were quite a lot of tall hills surrounding one side of Manila!
Being seated at the back of the plane, it took a while to clear immigration. Luckily, the arrival gate was only a short walk away. Although delayed by the queues, the luggage still took some time to come out. The airport seemed like a blast from the past.